After returning from vacation, a Rosedale woman and her husband decided to grab dinner at Tempo Lounge in Essex. She decided to play a few games of Keno, using birthdays and a couple of other special numbers. As she was filling out the playslip, a friend who was sitting nearby said he would like pitch in and play along with her.

The pair, who played $2 per game, went with a 6-spot bet for multiple games. They also added the Keno Bonus option. During the sixth game, they watched the monitor in disbelief as all six of their numbers appeared. Without the extra money per game and with no Keno Bonus, the game would have paid $1,000. But, since they played $2 per game and the Keno Bonus was 10x, the total payout for that game was $20,000. They also won $22 throughout the other nine games on their ticket.

The 54-year-old woman and her friend from Essex were thrilled with the win, and didn’t hide their excitement at the restaurant.

“I called my wife right away and she didn’t believe me,” said the 52-year-old friend who joined in the Keno game at just the right time. “She finally believed me when I got home.”

Both winners are using their prize money wisely. One is paying bills, while the other is saving for a new house.

For selling a winning ticket of $10,000 and up, Tempo Lounge at 402 Back River Neck Rd. in Essex will receive a $200 bonus.

“I looked at the Keno screen and said to myself that one day I’m going to finesse the screen and finally get my big pay out,” said Saram Danny Min, a Keno enthusiast from Silver Spring. That “one day” became Nov. 27, when his 8-spot bet gave him a $10,000 payday.

The 27-year-old, who plays Maryland Lottery games every now and then, prefers playing Keno at the Casa Blanco Sunoco in Silver Spring. On his lucky day, he went to the Lottery retailer with $25. He spent $20 for gas and spent the remainder playing Keno.

Saram has a set of numbers, consisting of family birthdays, that he plays regularly and he bet on the numbers 2, 8, 10, 14, 31, 41, 79 and 80. Thanks to his win, the pest control employee will be supplementing his bank account with extra cash for the holiday. The big family man plans to share his winnings with his loved ones.

Because the Lottery retailer sold a winning Keno ticket of $10,000 and up, Casa Blanco Sunoco is a winner, too. The retailer located at 8875 Piney Branch Road in Silver Spring will receive a $100 bonus from the Lottery – equal to 1 percent of the prize.

Keno Sprinkler gives you the chance to multiply your winnings! Check your Keno tickets for the DOUBLER or TRIPLER message (see below) and if your numbers come in, you’ll win 2x or 3x the prize! This promotion will run from Monday, November 28 through Sunday, January 1.

A lucky nurse practitioner discovered her weekly Keno fun could lead to side effects like shortness of breath, perspiration and seeing dollar signs. Debra Smith of Severna Park experienced all that and more after a heart-fluttering $16,000 prize came her way.

The lucky win came as she was playing the monitor game at The Greene Turtle in Pasadena with her regular gathering of family and friends. The 55-year-old found Lottery luck with birth dates of family members and pets.

“The numbers were a combination of the birth dates of my daughter and the birthdates of my Doberman and Mastiff,” Debra said.

Her win came on a ticket bought earlier at the lucky retailer. “I bought a ticket to go, and checked it later using my phone,” said the Anne Arundel County resident. She watched her smartphone screen closely as the numbers from her lucky ticket appeared, along with a Super Bonus that kicked her prize into the stratosphere.

Debra began texting family members to share the excitement of the win. She isn’t quite sure yet how she will spend her lucky winnings.

Her lucky retailer shares in the fun of her win. The Greene Turtle, located at 20 Magothy Beach Road, will receive a $160 bonus from the Lottery – equal to 1 percent of the prize.

A Catonsville waterproofing consultant who spends his days helping others dry up basements and buildings is pleased he hasn’t dried up his Keno luck!

William Snyder just claimed a $10,500 prize at Maryland Lottery headquarters in Baltimore on a $20 ticket purchased at his lucky Lottery retailer. On Thursdays, the father of 12 routinely heads for Bullwinkles Saloon in Baltimore to play Keno and visit with a daughter who works there as bar manager. The popular patron also routinely buys a round for everyone when he’s flooded with Keno luck.

The grandfather of more than 30 and great-grandfather of five believes in responsible gaming. He only plays Keno once a week and is careful to spend only what he can afford. “I don’t get goofy with it,” said the 75-year-old. “I like to play all the lines. I’ve been lucky with it.”

On Nov. 3, William played 20 rounds on an 8-spot bet, selecting the numbers 3, 13, 23, 33, 43, 53, 63 and 73. “I knew right away I’d won,” he said. The other patrons did, too! In fact, everyone shared in the joy of his big win. His daughter got a big tip, the other customers enjoyed a round on him and the Lottery paid Bullwinkles Saloon a bonus of $105. When a retailer sells a Keno ticket that wins $10,000 or more, the Lottery gives the facility a bonus equal to 1 percent of the prize value.

William is a repeat winner of Keno prizes of all sizes. He claimed a $10,000 prize about two years ago and $5,000 another year. He plans to spend his prize on home improvements.

A Bel Air family was enjoying lunch Saturday at a local restaurant when Lottery luck shined on their gathering. The wife decided to play a few games of Keno and they left with a $10,018 prize.

“I normally play family birthdays, but my mom suggested I add some 7s to the play card,” said the 36-year-old wife. “I added 7, 17 and 77 and those numbers with the birthdays came out on the third game.”

Snack House in Bel Air, which was the site of her win, lacks a Keno screen so the family watched the games play on her smartphone. When her numbers came out, she could not believe it and handed the ticket to her 53-year-old husband to verify the win.

“We left the restaurant and I took the ticket to another Lottery retailer the next day to make sure it was really a winning ticket,” he said. “The cashier told me it was too high to cash there and handed me the printout of the prize amount.”

Stunned, the couple knew they had to come to Lottery headquarters to claim the prize. They plan to spend their winnings on home improvements and to purchase a car for their son.

The lucky retailer is Snack House located at 696-A Baltimore Pike. For selling a winning Keno ticket of $10,000 and up, the retailer will receive a $100.18 bonus from the Lottery – equal to 1 percent of the prize.

An Eastern Shore couple who shared appetizers and a few rounds of Keno at Taylor’s Neighborhood Restaurant in Berlin on Friday left with a lot of clams – $24,000 worth, to be exact. Their five-draw Keno ticket delivered a hefty prize!

The engaged couple picked their own Keno numbers – a 5-spot consisting of birthdays – and added the Super Bonus feature in hopes of multiplying any prize. They enjoyed their meal and watched the Keno monitor. The excitement began with the start of the third game on their ticket.

“I was watching and the numbers kept coming out,” said the gentleman, a merchant marine. “Once I saw that we matched four numbers, I started getting excited.”

Matching five of five Keno numbers pays $300. The couple played $20 per game and the Super Bonus produced a 4x multiplier, bringing the win to $24,000.

They don’t know yet what they will do with their windfall but said they look forward to spending time together.

Taylor’s Neighborhood Restaurant located at 11021 Nicholas Lane in Berlin also wins. For selling a winning Keno ticket of $10,000 or more, the retailer will receive a $240 bonus from the Lottery.

A 79-year-old Anne Arundel County woman turned a $2 Maryland Lottery Keno bet into a $12,500 prize, thanks to family members’ birthdays and anniversaries and a store clerk’s fast work. The excited winner came very close to not getting her ticket processed in time.

“My playslip wasn’t going through, so I suggested he put it in the machine sideways,” said the winner. She purchased her ticket at Linthicum Market. “It worked, and we got the ticket in just in time!”

After watching all seven of her numbers come out, the winner said she “almost fell on the floor”. The multiplier for the game was 5X, which turned her $2,500 win into $12,500. Her lucky numbers were 11, 22, 33, 44, 55, 66 and 77.

Accompanied by her son to Lottery headquarters, the Linthicum resident said the win came at the perfect time as her first great-grandchild was born four months ago and they have yet to meet. The enthusiastic winner plans to spend her prize on a trip to see her new relative as well as paying bills and property taxes.

The lucky Lottery retailer, Linthicum Market at 421 S. Camp Meade Road in Linthicum Heights, also wins. For selling a winning ticket of $10,000 or more, the store will receive a $125 bonus – equal to 1 percent of the prize value.

Terry Smallwood of Germantown just renewed his big winner status with the Maryland Lottery, claiming a $10,000 Keno prize.

The Montgomery County man found his lucky ticket at the Sugarloaf Wine Cellar in Germantown. He placed a $15 6-spot wager and, because he added the Super Bonus option, saw his prize double. His winning numbers were 4, 6, 19, 24, 54 and 63.

“I’ve been blessed to have been able to win money playing the Lottery,” he said. “It really is a gratifying feeling to win like this.”

The 53-year-old won $25,000 on Sept. 30 playing Pick 4 using his lucky numbers, 2, 1, 5 and 4. He also won a $50,000 prize seven years ago on a $20 scratch-off.

“I’ve been playing those numbers for nearly 30 years,” Terry said. “The numbers 2, 1, 5, 4 were part of a serial code on one of my old bank cards that I use to have years ago. I just liked those numbers, for some reason, and I’ve been playing them ever since.”

The U.S. Army retiree was talking with a group of friends he sees regularly at the Sugarloaf Wine Cellar when he noticed that most of his Keno numbers had popped up on the Keno monitor. “I didn’t scream or jump up and down but I began to feel very happy,” he said.

Terry enjoys playing Lottery games like Keno because he can hang out with friends while playing. “I also feel like as long as I can afford to play a few Lottery games here and there and I’m not using important bill money like my mortgage money when I do, then what’s the harm. The fact that I’ve been winning over the years, doesn’t hurt either.”

The happy winner plans to give some of his winnings to his daughter for graduating college and may buy a new grill. The rest of the prize will go into savings.

His lucky Montgomery County retailer also benefits from his big win. Sugarloaf Wine Cellar located at 12955 Wisteria Drive will receive a $100 bonus from the Lottery for selling a winning Keno ticket of $10,000 and up.

A southeast Baltimore carpenter hanging out with his grandpa at a Lottery retailer in Dundalk decided the time had come for a change in his Keno strategy. After experiencing a lack of Lottery luck, the 26-year-old used personal numbers on his 8-spot ticket. The lucky grandson nailed a $10,000 prize on the first of his three games!

He found his luck at his regular spot, which is the Soda Pop Store in Dundalk. He and his grandfather enjoying hanging out there together and playing Keno from time to time. On July 24, the day his luck changed, the father of two played his grandparents’ birth dates and the age his late grandmother would have reached this year if she were still living. The result was an astonishing Keno win.

He showed his grandpa the winning numbers and took the lucky ticket home to show his fiancé.

“I had to surprise her,” he said. “I told her, ‘Look, do you see those numbers? I won!’”

Parents of a 5-year-old and 7-year-old, the couple celebrated a win that will provide cash to repair a vehicle the carpenter needs for his work. He also plans to pay off bills with his prize and spend the rest on his children’s expenses.

The lucky retailer, Soda Pop Store located at 7715 Westfield Road in Dundalk, is also a winner. The Lottery will give the Baltimore County store a bonus of $100 for selling a winning Keno ticket of $10,000.